Judges
PROFESSIONAL
Andrew Lieberman
Design Director
AvroKO Hospitality Group
Andrew is an Associate Principal and Design Director with AvroKO. Now with four offices and a global team of designers, Architecture and interior design remain at the heart of their firm, and they’ve built a reputation for concept-driven spaces that resonate with guests through their holistic design approach built on a unique central narrative. Their critically hailed portfolio includes restaurants, bars, hotels, retail, food halls, and residential projects from New York to Hong Kong, all characterized by a unique convergence between the ideals of the past and an off-beat, forward-looking sensibility. Andrew’s background in History, his extensive world travels, and his years working on the front lines of hospitality all contribute to his understanding of human emotion and his passion for influencing and shaping the human experience through design.
Dena Molnar
VP of Design
Luna Textiles
Dena Molnar is Luna Textiles’ Vice President of Design. Her background is in the design and fabrication of textiles for interior environments. Prior to completing an M.Des in Technology at The Harvard Graduate School of Design, she earned a BFA in textiles from Rhode Island School of Design. From there, she went on to New York City to design for leading manufacturers and suppliers of textiles to commercial architects and designers. She has over 15 years of industry experience, including time spent as a textile technology consultant to Google, a consultant for MIT, a senior designer at Maharam, and cofounder of WOVNS. Now based on the West Coast, Dena oversees the design team responsible for Luna’s product line. Her vast experience in the industry allows her to continue Luna’s tradition of unconventional design and groundbreaking fabrication.
Helene Oberman
Managing Director
Interior Design Magazine
After honing her knowledge of the decorative arts in the rugs and carpets department at Sotheby’s, Helene Oberman joined Interior Design in 2004 as the assistant to the editor in chief. Her natural talent for managing photographers, writers, and designers alike led to her 2008 promotion to Managing Editor, and in 2019 to her current position as Managing Director. Helene has served as a member of the Design Trust for Public Space Art Committee and is currently on the Advisory Board Steering Committee for the Fashion Institute of Technology Interior Design Department, the IIDA Leaders Breakfast Event Committee and the DIFFA Dining by Design Steering Committee.
STUDENT
Anthony J. Amenta, AIA, LEED AP
Principal
Amenta Emma Architects
Tony Amenta is President and Co-Founder of Amenta Emma Architects and leads the firm’s Multi-Family and Mixed-Use studios. His work includes Affordable Housing projects in Massachusetts and Connecticut, public work for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and commercial and retail projects throughout New England. He is Principal-in-Charge of the Woburn Village Mixed Use project in Woburn, MA, and the Peer Reviewer for the Avon Village Center Development in Avon, CT. Tony has served on the Boards of REFA Connecticut, West Hartford Housing Authority, West Hartford Design Review Advisory Board, AIA Connecticut, and the Hartford Business Improvement District. Tony has lectured regionally on the topics of New Urbanist Planning, Retail Design and Workplace Strategy. As President of Amenta Emma, Tony has orchestrated the expansion of the firm’s Hartford practice with the establishment of regional offices in Boston and New York.
Ming Thompson, AIA, IIDA
Atelier Cho Thompson
Ming Thompson is co-founder of Atelier Cho Thompson, a New Haven- and San Francisco-based multidisciplinary practice working between architecture, interiors, graphics, and strategy. Ming was a recipient of the AIA Young Architect Award in 2020, and her firm has been the recipient of numerous national design honors. ACT’s work has been published in Architect, Arch Daily, and Design Milk, among others. Educated at Yale College and the Harvard Graduate School of Design, Ming has served on design juries around the U.S. Ming is a first-year advisor at Yale and serves on the boards of Yale-China, the New Haven Preservation Trust, and AIA Connecticut.
Colleen Arria
Principal
Stantec
Colleen Arria is a Principal and Interior Designer with Stantec. She co-leads the workplace design practice in the Boston office and brings 19 years of experience across workplace, commercial mixed-use, institutional, multi-family and student housing design. She believes and strives to make design an inclusive and holistic process, enabling clients to discover how their goals and culture can be supported and transformed through collaborative placemaking.
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